Hello again & Part 2

I feel like I've fallen off my duff as far as blogging goes and it's completely true! :) Oh well, sorry to leave anyone/everyone hanging on the diagnosis of our oldest.

Here's the end of part 1, we were in the ER:
"Then the doctor came and talked to me, what I thought was possibly an allergic reaction to the antibiotic was something much more serious.

To be continued . . ."

He said that her blood sugar was over 530 (I can't remember the exact number) and that she has juvenile type 1 diabetes. He said that she would be transferred by ambulance (of course!) to the nearest children's hospital. I just kind of let my chin drop, mouth hang open, and it wasn't long until the tears started to fall.

She looked so sick (well kinda anyway), so thin, so pale. I had pulled her hair up and wrapped a pony tail holder over and pulled the hair through so it would be out of the way in case she threw up. She had on her pink pajamas. She looked very thin and like a ballerina. She should've been performing on stage (though my kids have never taken ballet is beside the point) not lying in a hospital bed about to go on an ambulance ride!

Next I had to call my husband and tell him. He was asleep when I called, I felt bad for waking him. I really didn't think he'd even remember what I said, or that he understood the seriousness but he seemed to.

Some of the nurses came in, checking on us before their shifts ended or to say some kind words (one had a niece who was diagnosed not long ago), also a hug and shoulder to cry on. I truly appreciated their kindness.

We waited (and waited) for the ambulance, then it was time. The ambulance guys (2 men) were kind but also funny. It was what I needed. They helped us get settled at the children's hospital. Then the hurry up and long waits started, fast blurs of activity then long stretches of quiet, lots of guilt and crying on my part. (just keeping it real!)

The last few months of vague illness and sickness would soon make sense. If you keep track of such things, her hA1c was 12 (I just had mine checked and it was 5.4, we're starting to aim for her to be less than 7).

Later, I searched for mommy blog posts but found almost none about this topic, maybe I missed them for some reason. I want others to know that there is someone else out there, though our journey is not the same, our child's treatment/bodies/ages/diagnosis story is not the same, I'm also living this scary nightmare BUT thankful that God is in control and that my child is still here! Type 1 juvenile diabetes is manageable, livable, and one day maybe we'll look back and be thankful. Here's one college student I've found that is thankful: Mollie writes at a blog about diabetes.

Part 3 coming soon (more about our hospital stay, ugh!) :)

WFMW - vacuuming the high chair

Yes, it is that simple - vacuum the high chair (or booster seat) to clean it quickly. This works really well when the child has eaten something with LOTS of crumbs like crackers or you've let it build up for a while. Make sure you get under the highchair cover! For better nuggets of advice go to Shannon's. :)

My crazy life!

I hope I got all of the cheese out from under my fingernail. I hate the feel of processed slice cheese, but children #3 and 4 will eat it so we buy it. :) I was cleaning the highchair tray and got some stuck under my fingernail, ugh. I think it's gone now.

Well, I've been kind of MIA on my blog (did anyone notice? Bueller, Bueller, Bueller?) I need to give a quick shout out to Michelle (http://thisonesforthegirls.wordpress.com/). She said she'd be reading!! :) We've been trying to get our house ready to sell (yes, we've been doing this for months now) so I've been busy organizing and decluttering. But last week other events took over our lives.

Our oldest had a "boil" and a friend's sister-in-law (she's a nurse) advised us to see the doctor. So on Wednesday (a week and a half ago) we went and she started on an antibiotic. (Apparently, yesterday's boil is today's staph infection! Who knew?) Thursday night she threw up twice and was breathing funny. Hubby and I were watching a movie (and it was midnight) but I knew she needed to go to the ER. So I packed her up and hubby went to bed.

The ER wasn't very busy (praise God) so we got right in. They drew blood and ordered a chest x-ray. She went to the bathroom a couple of times, we came back to our "room" and the nurse asked if I'd seen the doctor. I said no, and she said they needed to start an IV. I thought ok, so there is something going on!

Then the doctor came and talked to me, what I thought was possibly an allergic reaction to the antibiotic was something much more serious.

To be continued . . .

Win a coupon management system

If you're like me, you could use some help organizing all of the coupons you have. This is a contest to win a coupon management system - and it looks beautiful. Please go here and enter too (or order one for yourself)!! :) Drawing will be held Thur Aug 27.

MIA

Sorry I've been MIA. We've been REALLY trying to get the house ready to sell. I've been prepping, cleaning, and PAINTING! :)

Hoping to write more soon,
Need A Nap2

COW APPRECIATION DAY!!

We appreciate Chick-Fil-A!! :) The kids and I went to Chick-Fil-A today, of course we dressed up like cows for some free food. We met a friend and her child (who were mildly dressed up). Last year we didn't see anyone dressed up but this year was a different story.


Here's one of my crew


Then here's the Chick-Fil-A cow

We used paper plates to draw cow faces on, then cut out ears and stapled them on. Two of my kids had paper grocery sacks to cover their torsos. The other two had white shirts with "spots" taped on them. Hubby was at work! :)

Yes, these pictures were taken AT Chick-Fil-A so we get extra points from Crystal at MoneySavingMom!! We saw several families that took white trash bags and added spots. One family (8 kids!) had white shirts with black skirts/pants and faces painted, they even had tails (one item I forgot completely). They were really cute.

What's going on?

Or for you Southerners - what's goin' on?

We've been busy at the Need A Nap household. We've had some birthdays (or coming up soon) so we'll change everyone's ages, ok? We now have a 7 year old, 5 year old, 3 year old and 1 year old. We're still homeschooling year-round. That way if "momma's" having a bad day we don't have to worry about skipping school today. :) We've purchased most of the curriculum we want to use this fall and I'm glad to have been able to get so much of it secondhand. I still need to get our schedule/routine under control. Our 3 year old can open the childproof door covers and the 1 year old is weaned so our schedule has been needing some changes!! :)

We're still trying to get our house ready to sell. It's been slow and tedious. I'm hoping to get some painting done this weekend (with a friend's help) so things will look a little better. We're trying to get a carport roof leak under control (the contractor wasn't successful and hubby's been using many tubes of roof caulk to take care of it, saves us $ to do it ourselves). I'm so thankful my husband is willing and able to get up on our roof. I usually don't mind heights (or things like rollercoasters) but being up on the roof made me very anxious and uncomfortable!

Hubby's birthday and our anniversary are coming up. I'm expecting both to be low-key events. We had a bigger celebration last year for our 10-year anniversary. And I gave hubby a surprise party for his 30th birthday a couple years ago. Any gift suggestions?

I'm hoping to do a little less blog reading and catch up on my Bible reading then maybe I'll be able to blog here a little more. We'll see! I did take the time to do 2 quizzes. I saw the first one at A Reforming Mom and both at Stray Thoughts.

This is a test for men or women on how they'd be as a 1930s spouse.

98 As a 1930s wife, I am Very Superior Take the test!

I was surprised I scored so high!! I don't think I'm that good of a homemaker but I guess I might be doing better than I think (my husband always says I am).

This was a test on your book reader personality. (Take the quiz here.)

Your Personality: Serial Eclectic Reader!
Your responses show that you are both a serial reader and an eclectic reader, which indicates that you both read widely and frequently.

As a serial reader you're loyal to your favorite authors, but as an eclectic reader you're also open to new ideas and new writers, and are not wedded to a particular genre. That you manage to both keep up with your favorite authors and explore new writers indicates that you are likely to be what the research companies like to term a "heavy reader" - and a BookBrowse membership might be just what you've been looking for!

I thought this was very accurate for me. I do have a selection of favorite authors/series but am willing to read a book that sounds interesting or is highly recommended.

Super Savings Saturday

I haven't participated in this in a LONG time. But since I actually have a picture, I thought I'd post. My best deal over this last week (besides free diapers from L., thank you so much!), is probably 2 containers of .99 strawberries. Strawberries were on sale at Kroger 1.99 for 1 lb container. Not the greatest deal* (but the best advertised this week). However, when I went in there were several containers marked down to $.99. Yeah! I was planning to make strawberry shortcake but the kids and I devoured almost one whole container yesterday and will probably eat more today so we'll have to hold off on the strawberry shortcake. Lesson for you - keep your eyes peeled for those "manager's special" stickers at Kroger!! :)

Next best deal this week, at Meijer I was "trolling"** for coupons from the U-scan checkouts and found one that was badly mangled, $5 off $25 purchase. I just gave it to the friendly cashier and she took care of it for me - yeah!!

Feel like sharing or being inspired? Visit Super Savings Saturday at Money Saving Mom.

*When I went to Meijer their strawberries were $1.50 (but I paid less ha ha na na boo boo!). I like the lower prices at Meijer but their strawberries can be iffy sometimes. Usually their strawberries have to be eaten that day or the next, however the strawberries I previously bought at Kroger were much fresher and seemed to last longer.

**trolling (not sure if I made this up or read it elsewhere) - looking for coupons others have left, usually people will just lay them down on a shelf but sometimes the coupons are left intentionally at the self-checkout (no cashier to force them into your hand). I've also been known to dig through the trash can at Kroger (shh - don't tell anyone!). :)

Frugal Friday - saving when you wear contacts

As usual, I'm a little late to the party. Crystal had a post about saving on buying contacts and the comments were really good too. I have been wanting to write a post about saving $ when you wear contacts - how you use solution, etc. I started wearing contacts when I was sixteen. I took a hiatus from them (glasses seemed so much easier) for about 2 years (age 19-20) but have been wearing contacts almost all of the time for the last few years.

At first I used saline solution, cleaning solution, and weekly enzyme tablets (these were not disposable lenses!). Then enzyme drops came out so the weekly tablets were replaced with a daily drop into the case. Probably five years ago, the one-step solution came out. I tried the Opti-Free Express (because I had been using their solutions and enzyme drops) but it irritated my eyes so I went back to the old way. A couple of years ago, my eye doctor convinced me to try Aquify and I started using the one-step solution. This seemed kind of expensive to me so I figured out how to make it cheaper. I bought basic saline solution (Wal-Mart generic kind) and put that on my fingers to remove my contacts and to "wet" my fingers when rinsing with the all-in-one solution. (Fill your contact case with the all-in-one.) In the morning, I just dip my finger in the case to wet it then pull out the contact. I've found no rinsing is needed AND it hurts my eyes to rinse with the saline solution (if it is truly needed to rinse then the stinging goes away after a minute or two of blinking). Recently, there was a freebie for a sample of Opti-Free Replinish and I found that it worked for me. With coupons and sales, I was able to get 2 bottles of the Opti-Free Replinish cheaper than the Aquify. I have also found that telling my eye care place I need some sample bottles to travel with is a good way to get some for free. :)

For the last 2 years, I've been using two-week disposable contacts that have a better oxygen transfer (or something like that) so it's ok to sleep in them. I usually take them out every other night and keep wearing the contacts for one month. This also saves on solution and contact replacement. I tried the BEST ones before (I think you could keep them in even longer) but they irritated my eyes too badly. I'm wondering what my next appointment will bring though, my astigmatism was pretty bad last time and the doctor suggested trying the astigmatism contacts, anyone have those? Any difference in wear and care?

For other frugal hints, visit Crystal at Frugal Friday.

Hmm, busy and music

We've been busy this week with VBS but I just HAD to post about Shannon's giveaway. Go check it out here. WOW Hits 1 is a new compilation CD, full of hits from some of my favorite Christian recording artists, including Steven Curtis Chapman, Casting Crowns and Chris Tomlin. You can see more details here. The nice folks behind WOW Hits 1 are offering TWENTY winners each a boxed set of 17 CDs, one CD for each of the artists represented on WOW Hits 1.

I love the music of Steven Curtis Chapman and can recommend (well, any) his newest release This Moment which is one of the CDs to win!

However, this giveaway is for bloggers only so what are you waiting for? Start your own blog!!

WFMW - flushable wipes are not flushable!

It's another WFMW.
I have to admit that I can be a sucker for advertising, but surely if the instructions say that the wipe is okay to flush down your toilet then it should be ok to flush down your toilet, right?? Apparently, not. I've spoken to others (and my husband has too) and some of our plumbing issues (you don't want to know, trust me) might be attributed to using flushable wipes (cleaning ones and toddler ones) that we *actually* flushed down the toilet. Please line your bathroom trash can and begin putting those flushable wipes in there b/c you don't want to clog your sewer line with *supposedly* flushable wipes! Just to let you know - not flushing those flushable wipes works for me! :)

As always, check out Shannon at Rocks in my Dryer for more helpful tips.

Frugal Friday - free software to download

I haven't used this site very often but it is part of my bloglines so I wanted to let you know about it. Every day there is a different licensed software to download for free at Giveaway of the Day. I try to look at the comments before considering whether this is a good program or not, but understanding that some people don't seem to understand the POINT of the web site or how to use it properly. I don't care what the "suggested price" of the software is, if it's TODAY's choice it is free! :) Also the user comments will sometimes point to a better program/website. So there's one to add to your favorites but take the price into consideration, I don't think every free software download is a good one.

For other frugal hints, visit Crystal at Frugal Friday.

WFMW - Theme of what Doesn't work for me!

This is a fun theme! As a frugal person, I would like to be able to accept new ideas and begin implementing them to help with our family budget. One idea that HAS NEVER worked for me is outside line-drying clothes. I have allergies (ok, major allergies) and line-drying outside just deposits all of the "crud" into the laundry which just intensifies my allergic reaction (or "which almost brings me to death's door" according to my husband). :)

The second idea (ok, I would like to implement this but haven't yet) is to use cloth napkins and kitchen towels instead of paper napkins and paper towels.

And those two tips do NOT Work For Me! As always, check out Shannon at Rocks in my Dryer for more.

Hello!

Hello? Anyone there? Bueller ... Bueller ... Anyone ... Anyone??

Sorry, we've been a tad busy with traveling and other things. Do you know how hard it is to pack for 6 people? Very hard!! :)

I hope to post a WFMW tomorrow if hubby will let me on the computer. TTFN.

WFMW - Greatest Hits themed edition

This was one of my first WFMW, I'm not sure it's my *best* one (read here about brownies - yum) but I still think it is the *most important*. Enjoy!

Do you have airline miles that are about to expire? Or are you changing credit cards and don't know what to do with the airline miles you have accrued (maybe the amount is too small to take a trip)? I have an idea for you!! (Sorry to sound like a commercial.)

Donate your airline miles. You may know someone who wants to take a missionary trip but doesn't have the $$$. Usually, the most expensive part of a missionary trip is the airline ticket. My husband has done mission trips using donated miles. A person from our church helped by donating miles, it wasn't enough for the whole trip but covered part of it.

Remember it never hurts to ask. I'm not sure of other organizations that would take donated miles, this is one I know of - The Centers for Apologetics Research (http://www.thecenters.org/).

Donated miles - it Works For Me!

UPDATE - per texastanya in the comments, you can donate to Fisher House which flies a wounded service men or assist families of wounded service men get to wherever the soldier is being treated.

Please help

Please help a fellow homeschooler. By taking the survey and linking on your blog, you may be entered for a $25 Amazon gift certificate at Half Pint House. Please go help her!! :)

WFMW - young child's bath

It's another WFMW.

This tip has been rolling around in my head for awhile. When our kids were 1 or so, it became a little more difficult to give their bath but I came up with an idea that has worked beautifully!! When you wash their feet, say "this little piggy . . .", you can start with the big toe then wash BETWEEN the toes before going to the next toe. So (big toe) this little piggy went to the market (wash between the big and 2nd toe) then this little piggy stayed home . . . (had roast beef, had none, cried wee wee wee all the way home). I can't guarantee that this will work on your older children (age 4 or so) but even they laugh sometimes. This really works for us because we bathe our kids once a week. OK, my secret's out. My cousin thought it was horrendous but after watching our kids she totally understood.

And those two bath tips are what Work For Me! As always, check out Shannon at Rocks in my Dryer for more helpful tips.

Quiz scores

18

More than Shannon!!

I Scored a 87%!

Awww, not as good as Shannon. :(

44%

needanap2.blogspot.com/

WANTED FOR THE SMELLY KILLING of a SHALLOW TURKEY

$2300

What's Your Blog Wanted For?
I had to do this over, the first one said someyhing about a kitten that was not appropriate (I am a selective cat lover!!). I don't have 2 hands to type (everyone say hi to the baby) or I'd take the other quizzes. :)

WFMW - Backwards edition, selling a house

It's another WFMW, a Backwards edition. I get to ask you for help/advice.

We know that we'll be preparing our house to sell it (planning to list it in the next two months). We have no idea what we're doing and any advice would be extremely helpful.

Specific areas

1) best time period to list our house

2) increasing curb appeal (what do you look for?)

3) maintaining cleanliness and order

4) how to do #3 with 4 children around!!

5) how to deal with "drop-ins" (would an "appointment-only" schedule be better?)

6) realtor-speak related to selling

7) Hmm? What's that? We have no linen closet so this is our make-shift shelf thing in the hallway. It holds many things. Diapers and wipes, I think I can move these to a "diaper-changing" basket. Towels, washcloths, and sheets - I have no idea what to do with these. I've moved the 2 oldest's sheets to a drawer in their dresser. Any thoughts as to how to rearrange this or get rid of it (does it look as bad as I think it does?)???

As always, thank you for help/advice/suggestions/commiserations! :) See Shannon for more WFMW!

Frugal Friday - saving on condiments

I LOVE K.C. Masterpiece bbq sauce, but it is expensive. (At least to me and our budget.) I look for sales and coupons but they are few and far between. BUT I can still save $ on my fav bbq sauce and other condiments (such as salad dressing). Look for a condiment bottle that has the "squeeze top insert". Having this insert allows me to pour out a smaller amount (less waste) and have more control over where the sauce is going. Then when you are done with that bottle, pop the insert out with a fork. Stick the insert in the dishwasher with your silverware (make sure it gets clean), and put the insert into any bottle that doesn't have one! :) You may need to look at different bottles to find the right size insert (there seems to be a standard small one and large one). I will admit to buying bbq sauce on sale (I will use it) mainly for the insert. I know these have inserts: Bull's-Eye (small), Sweet Baby Ray's (large), and K.C. Masterpiece (depends on the size of the bottle-the small 18 oz doesn't have it).

The next step is when the bottle is almost empty, remove the insert and set your bottle upside down to let the remaining amount drip out. I will often do this when having french fries at home. I'll pop out the insert and dip my fries in the remaining bbq sauce (that's left in the insert). Then stick the bottle on my plate allowing the rest of the bbq sauce to come down. I am seriously addicted to bbq!!

Some condiments don't work well with the insert, one example is a really chunky salad dressing just doesn't come out very well. The squeeze bottle format is great though for other salad dressings (especially when you want to monitor how much you're getting).

For other frugal hints, visit Crystal at Frugal Friday.

Super Savings Saturday - CP mail, Target string cheese, Meijer Dole salad

It's Super Savings Saturday at Money Saving Mom. I have some pictures!



I sent in for my freebies on the Colgate-Palmolive deal and it came this past week. Sample sizes of Speed Stick, Softsoap, Colgate Total, and a soft full Colgate 360 toothbrush!! Plus bag and coupons. The coupons expire 6/30/2008. Just thought you might like to know what you can expect in your mailbox soon. I also got my Excedrin rebate and the Chick-fil-A calendars and coupons (no $ on the gift cards) this past week.


I was finally able to go to Target for free string cheese (no overage) and I got free salad at Meijer this week!! :) Overall a very GOOD week!

Frugal Friday - fish and seafood

Well, for the unintiated (which was me, I grew up Baptist) - it's Lent time. Usually Catholics take a vow to abstain from something during the 40 days of Lent. They're also to not eat meat but most only observe this on Friday. (I don't understand why fish and seafood aren't considered meat.) Which leads us to the frugal part, during Lent you can purchase fish and seafood on sale. Also, if you choose to eat out most places are offering fish sandwiches and seafood on sale. Enjoy!

For other frugal hints, visit Crystal at Frugal Friday.

Hey!

I've probably run off the 2 readers I have by not posting much. Sorry, we're still in the midst of a bit of a plumbing crisis. It started (no joke) about 3.5 years ago!! Hopefully it will be resolved in the next few weeks. (Not an ongoing 3.5 year crisis, just a tree issue we've been dealing with for 3.5 years.)

Anyhoo, I need to get back to homeschooling. But be quiet, he's sleeping . . .

Bloggy Giveaways - winner!!

I wish I could give a copy to everyone, however only one person can win.

Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:35
Timestamp: 2008-02-03 05:10:28 UTC

monk5 [@] charter [.] net

If I don't hear back I'll redraw on Wednesday.

Congratulations Monk5!!

Frugal Friday - saving upc's

Thank you Crystal for hosting Frugal Friday. Many of you probably already keep upc's but I wanted to explain my system and highlight a few good offers.

Upc's are the coded numbers that scan at a register to give the product info and price. Some companies offer "specials" for keeping your upc's and sending them back in. 1) rebates - often rebates will require the upc (cut out) and cash register receipt (item and price circled) plus rebate form 2) trading upc's for items - often companies will have an offer of sending in upc's and $ (usually for shipping and handling) for a "themed" product, for ex. Kellogg's bowls 3) trading upc's for coupons - send in upc's and the company will send you coupons back.

The last offer - coupons, is the one I want to discuss today. I know of 3 companies that are doing this right now. Advance products (also called Fast Fixin') has a "fanatic" club. You sign up and they send you coupons. Then you can use those coupons to get products, save those upc's, and send 10 back for more coupon(s). I have done this a few times now - the coupon(s) are for a free product up to about $7-8! I haven't seen this recently at my available stores - but I know some of you still have access to the styrofoam Fast Fixin chicken products. Often these will be on sale for $1. You can send in those upc's to get a free product! Beech Nut baby food also has a sign-up club, you can get coupons (just call them at 1-800-Beech-Nut (1-800-233-2468) Mondays through Fridays, 8am to 5pm CT ), and then send in upc's to get more coupons. (Please don't yell at me for serving jar food. I've made homemade baby food before. It just hasn't worked as well for me. I also try to get my children off jar food ASAP and onto ground up/smashed table food, OK?) The last is Pepsi-Frito Lay deal, there's a peelie on the 12 packs where you buy 3/12-packs of Pepsi products (or so many 2L or 24 packs) and 3/9 oz or larger bags of Frito-Lay chips, mail-in the form with the original receipt(s) with items purchased between 12/26/07 - 2/6/08, and the UPCs. Then, you will receive: 5/$2 off coupons for future purchases on Pepsi Products, 1/$2 off coupon for future purchases on Frito-Lay Products, 1/$3 off coupon for future purchases on Frito-Lay Products. Offer requests must be postmarked by 2/22/08. (HT for the details: Money Saving Mom.) (I did this type of deal before with Pepsi and it was great.) I hope I've helped out at least one person.

Ok, so now you have a counter full of upc's, what to do? If I have trouble distinguishing a upc or I have a large collection, I'll label a ziploc sandwich bag with a sharpie marker and always put the upc's in that bag. We have one drawer (under our silverware drawer) that holds ziploc bags, foil, saran wrap, and UPC's/box tops. So I have a place for these items. If you're fond of keeping box upc's but don't know what the product is, then write on the back what the product is.

Another "win" for me was my popcorn bowl. I receive the Orville Redenbacher e-newsletter. One time it featured a free popcorn bowl for sending in two upc's. I knew I had two available in my pantry. So I sent them in (no S&H even) and waited. And waited. But I sure was excited the day my bowl came!! I do love it. :)

Look at Crystal's other Frugal Fridays here.

Video!

My husband said I HAD to post this. I'll see if I can figure this out.

This is about homeschooling. Count the kids! :)




Thank you Blogging Basics 101!!

Bloggy Giveaways Carnival - a book

I decided to join in and participate in the Bloggy Giveaways Carnival this time. But what to give away? Admittedly, I'm not the most original person and I'm quite frugal so I'm going to give away a hardcover book I own. If you are the lucky winner, you will receive Twelve Extraordinary Women by John MacArthur (read once by me). I thought this was a very good book. Shipping is included for U.S. addresses, would it be possible to mail a book internationally for $5 or less? If you'd like to enter and we could work out shipping charges (if over $5 internationally) then go ahead. (If not, I apologize, please re-read the sentences above (I'm frugal).) :)

Enter giving your e-mail or blog address (if I can link to your blog through your comment that's fine). Only enter once! I'll draw a winner at approximately 11:59 P.M. Sat. Feb. 2 Eastern time.

More info on the book:
Twelve Extraordinary Women: How God Shaped Women of the Bible, and What He Wants to Do with You
Celebrated for their courage, vision, hospitality, and spiritual giftedness, it's no wonder women were so important to God's plan revealed in the Old and New Testaments. It wasn't their natural qualities that made these women extraordinary but the power of the one true God whom they worshipped and served.
In Twelve Extraordinary Women, you'll learn more than fascinating information about these women, you'll discover-perhaps for the first time-the unmistakable chronology of God's redemptive work in history through their lives. These women were not ancillary to His plan, they were at the very heart of it.
Women featured - Eve, Sarah, Rahab, Ruth, Hannah, Mary, Anna, The Samaritan Woman, Martha and Mary, Mary Magdalene and Lydia

More giveaways at Bloggy Giveaways. More info/rules here.

Super Savings Saturday

This is my first time to participate in Super Savings Saturday. Sorry I don't have any pictures, maybe later today.

Best deals
Meijer - free Dole salad (.01 overage) price 1.99 buy 1 get 1 free then 2 $1 coupons from here (thank you Money Saving Mom and iMommies). *Updated - there is another B1G1F salad deal again this week (not sure if it's $1.99 though).
Walgreens - free Jane makeup (2 eye shadows and concealer, paid a little for tinted moisturizer), planning to send in the rebate for Purell hand sanitizer

I'll hopefully be getting some stuff at CVS later today.
And hopefully I'll be getting some free wipes (at Rite-Aid I had to get a raincheck for the Lansinoh wipes) sometime soon.
*Updated - I did get to go to CVS, however once again I blundered. I either gave her the wrong card or she scanned the wrong card so I messed up using some of my ECBs. It all worked out but I did spend a little more than I wanted. She wouldn't let me "stack" so that messed me up a little too. On the upside, I had one transaction finish at $.00 OOP and one at $.01 OOP!! :)

Good deal
Kroger - Kraft cheese is $2 but by buying 9 "Game Day essentials" you get $6 off at the register, so $1.34 per package. (Not as good of a deal as $.99 cheese at Walgreen's but I prefer mozzarella, and Walgreen's was out of cheese!) *Updated - this Kraft cheese deal does seem to be going another week.
Meijer - Beechnut baby food 2nd jars are $.33 (thanks to Heather at Freebies 4 Mom and another source I had some extra coupons). Again, not the greatest deal but not bad. A catalina printed for Gerber so that will come in handy. When looking around though I found that Del Monte is only $.32 so I'll be going back when I'm out of Beechnut coupons.

For more or to share your own savings today, please visit Crystal at Money Saving Mom.

Vision Forum giveaway

Biblical Womanhood is holding a giveaway for $100 at Vision Forum. For your participating comment you get one chance and for a blog post you get a second chance. Here's the details:
To enter to win this $100 passport:
:: Visit Vision Forum's website, browse around, and pick out some of your favorite products.
:: Come back here and leave a comment with your name and tell us what you'll buy if you win the $100 passport. (Please make sure to leave a blog address or email so I can get in touch with you if you win!)
:: Bonus Entry! Post about this contest on your blog with a link to this giveaway post and then leave a separate comment below with the link to your blog post mentioning this contest and you will receive two entries into this giveaway!
:: This contest will be open until next Monday (January 28, 2008) at noon. I'll randomly choose and post a winner later on that day.
:: This giveaway is open to any entrant from around the world. One entry per person, except in case of posting it on your blog which allows you two entries per person.

Frugal Friday - eating out for Valentine's Day

Some of you probably have a questioning expression on your face. Can eating out for Valentine's Day be frugal? Well, probably not! But there are a few options. My husband and I have learned that eating out on February 14th is not usually a good choice. The restaurants are crowded (even if you did make a reservation) and service is slow, etc. However I do LOVE to eat out and my husband likes to make me happy so sometimes we'll go out FOR Valentine's Day just not ON Valentine's Day. February 15th is a great day to choose (except this year b/c it's a Friday when traditionally a lot of people eat out) but probably this year Monday February 11 is a good choice (Tuesday nights are kids' night at some of the restaurants we might choose, and date night and kids' night don't mix). Another option if you really want to eat out is to contact some "fancy" restaurants about their Valentine's Day specials. Usually these only run on Valentine's Day and this is still early enough to make a reservation. For example, last year (or the year before or the year before, I can't remember) I called The Melting Pot (a fondue-ish hip place) and though it was still expensive to eat there they did have a Valentine's Day special, usually restaurants will have a special menu and selections just for 2 people and the price includes appetizer/meal/dessert/maybe drink. This might be a good way to eat out on Valentine's Day (if you so choose), remember make your reservations NOW! For a frugal approach, I would suggest looking at Amy's New Year's Eve special dinner at home.
Look at Crystal's other Frugal Fridays here.

Grammar quiz

Okay, my grammar doesn't totally stink!

You Scored an A

You got 10/10 questions correct. It's pretty obvious that you don't make basic grammatical errors. If anything, you're annoyed when people make simple mistakes on their blogs. As far as people with bad grammar go, you know they're only human. And it's humanity and its current condition that truly disturb you sometimes.

The It's Its There Their They're Quiz

I do pretty well with those type of questions (it's, its, there, their, and they're (the there/their/they're are a pet peeve of mine). Other issues in grammar (lay/lie, etc etc) not so good!

WFMW - check expiration dates

Not exactly new news but good anyway! Check your "use by" and "best by" and any other expiration-type dates. I tend to stockpile groceries when there's a good sale. However this can be a bad thing when you have company over and have to ask your husband to taste the croutons to make sure you're not going to kill anyone with passed the "best by" date croutons they might put on their salad. It is now 2008 (in case you didn't know)! :)

As always, check out Shannon at Rocks in my Dryer for more helpful tips.

Frugal Friday: Dollar Stretcher web site

When I first started looking online for information about saving money and how to stretch our budget I felt lucky to find Dollar Stretcher. Every link is dated so you can easily find out if it's older information or brand new. I will admit I don't visit the site every week like I used to, I do visit Crystal's Money Saving Mom though! I think Dollar Stretcher (now featuring Dave Ramsey) is really useful though, there's lots of reader tips and information about saving money and stretching your dollars! :)

Look at Crystal's other Frugal Fridays here.

WFMW - Backwards edition, Couch questions

It's another WFMW, a Backwards edition. I get to ask you for help/advice.

Our couch is a faux (fake) suede material. We love the look and feel (well, we did when we bought it). But now that we've had several children wipe their snotty noses and other things on it it doesn't look very pretty. Any advice on cleaning this material? Something quick I could use to get little "spots" out? I've thought about using fabric cleaner spray on it but I think I would have to dose the whole thing and it would take days to dry out - not a good option when company is coming in 30 minutes!

Another question - the cushions are always sliding out (especially when the kids are sitting/jumping on them. Any ideas to help with this? I keep pushing the cushions (not the kids) back in but it's really a pain.

As always, thank you for help/suggestions/commiserations! :) See Shannon for more WFMW!

Good reading about "Homemaking" profession vs At-home-mom titles

I thought Elizabeth at A Merry Rose: Blooming as Keeper of My Home wrote a very good post about titles and how you might think of your "career" as homemaker or stay-at-home mom or at-home-mom. Please go read! :)

I commented, "Great writing! I say homemaker when a 'career' is asked, I'll say 'stay-at-home' sometimes adding mom or mother when someone asks (for example at the store when they see my child(ren)). But to myself I probably say at-home-mom because my homemaking skills are greatly lacking!! My mom worked and I wasn't trained for this career. Our home was kinda a mess but adding 4 children in 6 years doesn't help! :) Nothing ever stays in the same place! I'm working on it and my husband thinks I'm doing a GREAT job (so I guess that's what matters the most)."

And this is my first post of 2008! Sorry, I've been a little absent. We hosted a New Year's Eve party for our Sunday School class at our HOUSE! Aaahh! So I've been doing a lot of cleaning and rearranging and some decluttering. We still have lots to work on though! Then we had a family over after church yesterday. Aahh. More cleaning, rearranging and decluttering! During the evening service last night (I had a headache too!), I told my husband, "wow, now I can relax." I don't think I realized how stressed I was. It's so nice to know no one is coming over for a while. EXCEPT it would be good to keep the house in a somewhat ready-for-company mode. We'll see. :)